This aluminum docking workstation from Acasis is made for Apple's Mac mini M4 computer and adds three USB-A ports, two DisplayPorts, memory card slots for SD and microSD.
Technology journalist specializing in audio, computing and Apple Macs.The new Acasis Mini M4 Workstation swallows Apple's baby Mac whole and provides three high-speed USB-A ports, two NVMe SSD slots and memory card slots.
You’ve bought one of Apple’s Mac mini M4 computers and you can’t wait to get into macOS. You wonder why you stuck with Windows for so long as you join a growing army of people who are migrating to Apple, especially as the Mac mini M4 is so powerful and affordable by Apple standards. One area where Apple isn’t affordable is extra RAM and storage. Apple charges a lot for these upgrades, but there are ways around it. You can buy a storage dock like the brand-new Acasis mini M4 workstation and get a slew of extra ports to extend your Mac mini’s performance and two NVMe SSD slots. This means you can max out the storage of your Mac up to 16TB or even set two SSDs up as a single RAID device.The Acasis mini M4 workstation is an aluminum case that holds the Apple Mac mini M4 vertically in a design that’s reminiscent of Apple’s Mac Pro computer. The case also has a few other advantages besides its extra ports and SSD slots. Because it holds the Mac mini M4 on its side, the docking station provides access to the power button, which Apple, for some reason, decided to place on the base of the mini, making it less easy to turn on and off. At the rear of the Acasis Mini M4 Workstation are two DisplayPort outputs and two USB-C connectors for the host computer and auxiliary power source.Another advantage of a vertical docking station over a horizontal design is that the Wi-Fi antenna isn’t blocked. The Acasis Mac mini M4 workstation has an open structure that aligns with the base of the Mac, minimizing any interference or blocking of the Wi-Fi signal.Acasis also points out that when using a USB 3.1 devices with the Mac mini M4, electromagnetic radiation could interfere with nearby Wi-Fi signals, potentially causing unstable connections or reduced wireless speeds. Acasis also says that the Mac mini M4’s Wi-Fi signal works find when just one 10Gbps SSD is connected to its USB-A 3.1 ports, but if you want to plug in more than one, the company suggests you use Ethernet. For what it’s worth, I always use Ethernet instead of Wi-Fi because I find it’s faster and more reliable, especially for making video calls. Incidentally, plugging in USB-A devices to the workstation, like mice and keyboards. won’t interfere with the Wi-Fi signal. On the side of the Acasis Mini M4 Workstation is a compartment for two NVMe SSDs which can be used as a RAID up to 16TB capacity.Setting up the dock is straightforward and everything inside is kept cool thanks to a near-silent cooling fan. Contrary to popular belief, SSDs can get quite hot in use and to avoid their performance being throttled by thermal excess, it’s always a good idea to have some form of active cooling.Once connected, the Acasis mini M4 workstation has three USB-A ports for connecting mice, keyboards, thumb drives or other peripherals. The USB-A ports have a maximum data transfer speed of 10Gbps. The workstation also has a couple of slots on the device for microSD and SD memory cards. The docking station connects to the host Mac mini M4 using a single USB-C cable. In addition to the three USB-A ports, this workstation has two DisplayPort video outputs, which can support a single 4K display up to 144Hz or two 4K displays running at 60Hz. Finally, there is the compartment with two slots for M.2 NVMe SSDs. The speed with one SSD installed is 20Gbps, but with two SSDs set up as a RAID, the speed climbs to a theoretical maximum of 40Gbps. At the front of the Acasis Mini M4 Workstation users can access two USB-C/Thunderbolt ports, headphone jack, plus the three USB-A 20Gbps ports and more convenient front power switch. On the top of the unit are slots for SD and microSD memory cards.With one SSD onboard, the real-world speed of the storage tops out at 1,600MB/s, but with the second slot filled, with the two SSDs set up as a RAID, that figure goes up to 2,800MB/s. The actual speed also depends on the specification of the SSD being used. The RAID can be set as RAID 0 or RAID 1 and each slot can hold an SSD up to 8TB, giving a maximum storage capacity of 16TB.Although the Acasis mini M4 workstation can function using bus power from the host computer. However, to get full use of all the ports, there is a DC power adaptor supplied that plugs into a USB-C 5V 3A port that ensures the dock has all the juice it needs to run properly with power-intensive devices or multiple devices working simultaneously. This new Mac mini m4 dock workstation from Acasis is small enough to sit on a desk and comes with magnetic and non-slip feet that reduce any vibrations and ensure that the unit doesn’t slide all over the place when plugging and unplugging peripherals. The two DisplayPorts on the Acasis Mini M4 Workstation can drive one 4K display at 144Hz or two 4K at 60Hz.
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